February 14, 2012 – MOSCOW – Russia came close to nuclear disaster in late December when a blaze engulfed a nuclear-powered submarine carrying atomic weapons, a leading Russian magazine reported, contradicting official assurances that it was not armed. Russian officials said at the time that all nuclear weapons aboard the Yekaterinburg nuclear submarine had been unloaded well before a fire engulfed the 167-metre (550 feet) vessel and there had been no risk of a radiation leak. But the respected Vlast weekly magazine quoted several sources in the Russian navy as saying that throughout the fire on Dec. 29 the submarine was carrying 16 R-29 intercontinental ballistic missiles, each armed with four nuclear warheads. “Russia, for a day, was on the brink of the biggest catastrophe since the time of Chernobyl,” Vlast reported. The 1986 disaster in modern-day Ukraine is regarded as the world’s worst nuclear accident. Neither the Russian Defense Ministry nor the office of Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who has responsibility for military matters, would immediately comment on the report. A spokesman for the navy could not be contacted. The fire started when welding sparks ignited wooden scaffolding around the 18,200-tonne submarine at the Roslyakovo docks, 1,500 km (900 miles) north of Moscow and one of the main shipyards used by Russia’s northern fleet. The rubber covering of the submarine then caught fire, sending flames and black smoke 10 metres (30 feet) above the stricken vessel. Firemen battled the blaze for a day and a night before partially sinking the submarine to douse the flames, according to media reports. Vlast reported that immediately after the fire the Yekaterinburg sailed to the navy’s weapons store, an unusual trip for a damaged submarine supposedly carrying no weapons and casting doubt on assurances that it was not armed. “K-84 was in dock with rockets and torpedoes on board,” the magazine said, adding that apart from the nuclear weapons the submarine was carrying torpedoes and mines as well as its two nuclear reactors. –Reuters

So if this is an accurate report it once again goes to show you cannot trust any report a government gives to the public…. it was not carrying anything dangerous – it was carrying lots of things that were exceedingly dangerous….. I suppose the rational for not telling the truth / facts was not to scare the public….. or not to let foreign nations know how close to catastrophe they really were. One must not allow others to see one’s vulnerabilities and hang the consequences!

For amateur historians and military / navy buffs….. Try reading the appendix in the back of the book, “K-19: the widowmaker : the secret story of the Soviet nuclear submarine” (Author Peter A. Huchthausen.)
The listings of all the [*known* details] Soviet nuclear submarine accidents and disasters, will blow your mind.
It is a very interesting book to read, as well.

yeah and just imagine the world after all the reactors blow up……..i think we all know “something”big is gonna happen,and those reactors will most likely destroy any hopes of rebuilding after a major catastophe….but hey…what do i know.

Dan, what do you know, indeed? Typical uninformed public death to the world reaction. Is this accident a bad thing, yes it is. Is it an earth ending accident. Absolutely not. I’ve been in the nuclear business since 1986 and I have yet to see the end of the world scenario. Grant it the Japanese accident is terrible and they will be cleaning it up for years to come. I hope not too many of my nuclear brothers got hurt or killed.